Rising Political Awareness Among Iraqi Voters Bodes Well for Country’s Future

Many Iraqis felt like they had more of an independent voice in the provincial elections this past weekend than the last races in 2005.

Part of the reason is that this was the first time Iraqis could vote for individual candidates in what was called “open lists.” In the past, we just had “closed lists”, which meant we could only choose for a political party, and the parties that won got to choose from their members who would hold certain positions.

Jafar Jani

Um Ali and her grandson waived their ink-stained fingers after going to the polls in Baghdad on Saturday. Even though minors were not allowed to vote, many voters brought their children to voting booths to teach them about democracy.

With the new open list system, we saw genuine campaigning from candidates, who gave speeches and told us what they would do for Iraq. It was the first time we had seen something like this and more than 14,000 candidates took advantage of the new system to run in Saturday’s elections.

But the most important factor is that many Iraqis felt more free of their sectarian or religious ties of the past, and voted for whoever they thought was the best candidate. That’s why initial reports show that the largest Shiite political party, the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq or ISCI, did relatively poorly in the elections.

Many ISCI candidates still relied on religious slogans to lure voters, while Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, appears to have performed strongly. Although Mr. Maliki is part of the Islamic Dawa Party, he sponsored the State of Law list for these elections to emphasize a strong central government.

Haji Muhammad, a retired government employee, said he always felt controlled by the government when it came to elections. Under Saddam Hussein, Iraqis didn’t have any choices and the dictator always won almost 100% of the vote. But even in 2005, Mr. Muhammad said he felt he was controlled by his sectarian passion.

“But this time, I have the full control of my voice and would not let it go for anything,” said Mr. Muhammad, who chose Mr. Maliki’s party. “I will choose the person who will make this place better.”

It seems like a new kind of political consciousness is forming in Iraqi society and it holds promise for the beginning of a democratic culture. Iraqis hope that they will not go back to the days when they did not have control over the ballot boxes. But this fear of a return to the old days when average Iraqis had no power is still present.

Um Ali, 56, took her grandsons to the polling station on Saturday so they could dip their fingers in ink, which shows that people had voted, even though they were too young to cast a ballot. Many other voters brought their children to the voting booth to teach them about democracy.

Um Ali said she wanted her grandsons to remember this moment and feel the joy of voting in a free election. But from her life experience, she says nothing in Iraq stays the same. “I’m afraid that when my grandsons are old enough to vote, they might not have the same chance as I had,” she said.